Kukla's Korner Hockey

The Canadiens looked great this afternoon, defeating the San Jose Sharks 3-1. When Roman Hamrlik gets a breakaway, you know luck is going your way.

More interesting? This nugget from Bruce Garrioch’s weekly column:

“Montreal GM Pierre Gauthier is trying to add a forward with some size. While Gauthier would like to move underachieving C Scott Gomez and his $7.37-million cap hit, that’s not going to happen. Maybe the Habs will take back RW Alex Kovalev from the Senators. He’d like to finish his career in Montreal and he sure looks like this might be it for him ... “

Now it’s not really a rumour per se, but it’s an interesting idea. I am biased, because I love L’Artiste, but would I welcome Kovalev back? I’d go as far as saying I would encourage it. Tomas Plekanec and Andrei Kostitsyn had special chemistry with Kovalev, the Habs need another big body up front, and his shot on the power play would be a lethal alternative to Mike Cammalleri’s.

So yes, I’m on the bring back Kovalev bandwagon. Heck, we can fit his salary now. What would the Senators want?

Comments

Danish television actually televised the game, so I had a decent look at Montreal and especially Eller. Their line created quite a bit of havoc in the offensive zone, and mostly avoided trouble in their own. Eller is starting to look like the confident player he used to be, and while he should cut down on penalties, it’s starting to look good.

San Jose looked like the better team for most of the game despite a somewhat disinterested attitude, but Montreal have been able to win a few close games with the help of Price. I think their point total is greater than the talent on the roster would imply, which makes the acquisition of Kovalev look like a good idea if it’s possible. Melnyk’s assurances aside, the Senators aren’t winning the Cup this year, so they might as well cut some unnecessary salary.

I wouldn’t call Kovalev a ‘me-first’ player. What I would call him is an unpredictable alien.

In any event, one only has to watch a few minutes of a Senators game to see Kovalev’s legs are utterly shot. At 38, he’s moving at half the speed of Eric Godard. A dangler can’t dangle if he can’t skate. All Kovalev is at this point is a shot that isn’t mobile enough to get open.

Montreal would be stupid to assume his contract. Then again, that’s what I said when there were rumors that they wanted to trade for Gomez.

Kovalev will likely frustrate Montreal fans to death during the regular season, but the offense-challenged Habs will welcome another potential offensive game-breaker come playoff time.

It all depends on what else if available, and what assets the alternatives would cost them relative to Kovalev.. who frankly they shouldn’t have to pay more than a very low pick for.. they’d be doing OTT a favor as much as they’d be adding some depth to the MTL lineup.

Eller is looking really good over the past week or two. He’s got a genuine shot at locking down a top six spot. But he’s going to need a couple of more solid performances before he starts getting his ice time up to 15 or 16 minutes a game consistently.

One place I’ve been very impressed with Eller is his physical play. He never shies away from a hit, and he will always make a pass and take a hit rather than try to get out of the way. You don’t often see that in young skilled players. Often, they are intimidated by the opposition. Not Eller. That bodes well for the future.

As for Kovalev, I only half-heartedley think he’d be a good addition. If his attitude was in check, he’d be great - but none of us really know what was happening in the dressing room back in ‘08. However, I do maintain that his shot on the power play would be lethal, and if the Habs want to go somewhere in the playoffs they need some more proven depth. Kovalev would instantly provide that.